Keeping Warm on Cold Days

The second day of the new year finds me thinking about winter. I wonder why the atomic clock thermometer reads 74 degrees and my feet are cold. I am wearing an extra sweater, scarf around my neck, socks on my feet, and now I’ve added leg warmers and slippers. Is this just a sign of getting old?

I’m used to being barefoot in the house. There are few days a year when I need to wear socks during the day and to have to scuff around in slippers adds another uncomfortable level. Part of my mind wants to be stubborn. I’m inside with a heating system. Doesn’t that mean I should be warm? It is winter and I need to dress in layers – but in the house?

I swore to myself after the past few winters of freezing while in the house during the cold spells and having the thermostat turned as high as it would go that it wouldn’t be so in the new house. I believed with a tighter, newer, smaller house the inside temperature would be more consistent and comfortable. I guess other factors are at play, though.

Those past winters’ inside temperature levels had to do with older home, original windows and wind coming across the field. This new home is in a more sheltered area. Shouldn’t that account for something?

But, I do also need to take into consideration:

This house is on a slab without a basement which means there is little insulation under the floor. The carpeted areas are not too bad, but bare floors as in the kitchen and bathrooms are very cold. The heating system is forced hot air and while the heating ducts may be in the floor, heat rises which doesn’t allow for the floors to warm.

Now, while this is a newer, manufactured home, it is not built as sturdy as older stick-built homes. New materials do not have the old quality standards no matter what they buyer is told.

This will be a winter of assessing the situation as I learn about my new house. I don’t ever want to move again, so I need to pay attention, ask questions, and research options on how to make this the best house for me. I’m already considering finding out if more insulation underneath will help and I am slowly researching heating systems and types of fuel (a subject I’m struggling with and this is one time I wish someone could tell me what to do.) 

I know I definitely do not want something that would make more work as in a wood or pellet stove. I know I need to also consider air conditioning for the warmer months, so do I look for a system that could do both or do I just install a split air system this spring for the a/c and continue research for heat. There are many options and dealing with these types of situations are not in my strengths.

But I’ll get there. It’s always a learning experience.